This was great! I didn't have anise seeds so I used extra fennel. And used poultry seasoning instead of sage as I added this sausage to a Rice and Sausage Dressing for Christmas dinner. I put the herbs and spices in my mortar and pestle to crush the seeds. I will make this again and try it for breakfast but with less red pepper flakes for the kids.:)
Love this recipe. I used all fennel seeds as well really delicious. The basic recipe that you posted is excellent I did add a little marjoram just because. I used 1/2 tsp of the hot pepper.
Loved the maple flavor. Only had a pound of pork sausage, but still was able to make 12 patties.
We we're in the middle of making homemade sausages tonight and since my boyfriend's mom loves breakfast sausage and maple syrup that I decided to make this homemade recipe for her, I was in a rush that I didn't have the time to look further. I was surprised to see that garlic powder, onion powder and pepper was used for this recipe since it's supposed to be a sweet flavor, but I did it anyway. Hoping for the best. I made the recipe to the T and even though I added the maple syrup to it, it was basically a regular sausage patty with a very slight hint of maple. I added more syrup to it after it was cooked and it still didn't taste like a breakfast sausage. I'm sorry, I won't be making this again.
I always tweak to my own preferences, which in this case means less salt and less pepper flake ( I do like a kick, but since I was cooking soon after blending, I added some cayenne- the pepper flake is better if you give this time to rest and then re-mix before forming and freezing or cooking), otherwise this recipe is nicely balanced between sweet and savory, which is the point of breakfast sausage. To everyone who has made comments about fennel not belonging in breakfast sausage (or anise, or garlic, or whatever) and/or not being important- you don’t get to enjoy a whole symphony of flavors in sausage if you only have a string section with one violin. People don’t create recipes to address just your preference, and neither yours nor the author’s is wrong but you don’t ding a recipe because of your misguided ideas about food and cooking. Try it, even if you think you won’t like it. You might surprise yourself. I didn’t have star anise on hand so I used fine ground allspice as a little substitute and reduced it, I added paprika for color and some marjoram because I like it. Worked well.
I put in 1/3 cup of Maple Syrup. It turned out great. I think next time I'll try 1/2 cup. I also used dried Sage that I ground just before using. I thought that the amount of red pepper would be a little too much, but I think a full tablespoon would actually be better.
This turned out great we used fresh local maple syrup.
best breakfast sausage ever! Doesn't quite taste mapleish though:)
Like others I didn't use the fennel or anise just doesn't belong in a "breakfast" sausage. Next time I'll double the syrup and use half of the red pepper flakes. Pretty darn good.
